If It Hurts This Much, It Must Be Love
by Havah Kinny
Summary: Slash. A band of demons capture Jacob, Jasper and Alice, forcing Jasper to drink Jacob's blood, leading to Alice's murder. Scared, self-loating, alone, and seeking sanctuary, Jasper runs to the Quileute reservation...and Jacob.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N Ok, so this is movieverse mostly, and as this is fanfiction, I have changed a lot of things…also, some of the information and facts I have come from other vampire and werewolf myths, stories and legends. Please bear with me! I hope that this isn't terrible.**_

_**- Havah **_

Jacob can't stop his head from hurting as he comes to. He doesn't know where he is or what happened, he only knows two things: first, that he is chained to a wall, and second, his entire body is aching. _This can't be good_, he thinks to himself as his eyes begin to adjust to the dark room. Just as he's thinking that, it gets worse. The door opens and several people – if they're even people at all, enter. Jacob doesn't recognize any of them at first, but as they come closer, he realizes that he knows two out of the six or seven new comers. Jasper Hale and Alice Cullen are being dragged along, presumably, Jacob thinks, by the same beings that brought him here. He can't place their scent or see their faces, though, which makes him all the more nervous.

"Stop," one of the masked beings declares. The others stop, two each holding the vampires in their grasp. Jasper's hands are chained behind his back, which confuses Jacob, because he knows that Jasper is strong enough to repel chains – unless they're charmed or something. However, the means by which Jasper is restrained quickly becomes insignificant as the being speaks again. "Drink his blood." The being approaches Jasper. "Come on, Hale, bite the werewolf."

"N-no," Jasper shakes his head. "I won't do it."

"You're enemies," the being purrs. "Bite him."

"I WON'T!" Jasper roars. He knows what will happen if he bites Jacob; he knows what werewolf blood will do to him; he knows that it will make him crazy, that it will make him violent, and Jasper doesn't want to hurt anyone.

"You will," the being seethes. "Or we will kill Ms. Cullen."

"NO!" Jasper lunges at the being, struggling against the two holding him, but he can't get free, he isn't strong enough, and the pull him back, laughing at his attempts.

"Oh yes," the being nods. "Make your choice, Jasper, bite the werewolf or lose your mate."

"Fine," Jasper gives in, breathing heavily. He allows himself to be dragged forwards, closer to the wall where Jacob is chained. They push Jasper right in front of Jacob, holding him so that he can't run. Jasper looks up and immediately reads the terror in Jacob's eyes. "I-I have to," Jasper whispers.

"I know," Jacob nods. "Just do it."

"I'm sorry." Jasper lowers his head and opens his mouth. In the seconds before Jasper sinks his fangs into Jacob's throat, Jacob imprints…he knows that it's the wrong choice, but what can he do about it? He has no say in the matter, and the last thing that he thinks before he's screaming in pain is _Why him?_

He tries to hold back his screams, they make him feel weak, but he can't help it. The bite hurts, and Jasper can't stop, because now that he's tasted the blood, he's blocked out the screams and everything else. The pain from the venom is mind numbing as it sears through Jacob's body, trying to change him when there's no hope of that ever happening. Alice cringes; she's heard screams before, but she can't handle this – Jasper, her Jasper causing the screams of an innocent creature. She closes her eyes as Jacob writhes in pain, his eyes clenched shut as he screams.

"That's enough!" The being orders, practically pulling Jasper away from Jacob. The werewolf falls limp, held up only by the chains binding him to the wall. He's still alive, but he's weak, and if he thought his body hurt before, now he was fucking dying. The pain renders the werewolf unconscious, and he becomes unimportant as his blood immediately begins to affect Jasper. "Lock him up!" The being orders the second Jasper begins to fight wildly against his captors. They drag him across the room, throwing both him and Alice into a confined cell.

"Jasper?" Alice looks scared as she backs into a corner. "Jasper, I love you," she whispers. She could beg Jasper to stop, but he wouldn't hear her, because the real Jasper is trapped somewhere, his body ruled, _dominated_ by the forbidden blood. She could try to fight him off, but she's seen the future, and this is her end, so she lets it come. Jasper tears her to pieces, not even conscious as to what he's doing until long after it's done.


	2. Chapter 2

"He's of no use to us anymore," the being unlocks the chains binding the now half-conscious Jacob, and the boy falls to the floor in a weak heap.

"What should we do with him?" one of the others asks.

"Take him back to the reservation, alive - we may need him again some time, he's weak, he'll be good in the future, easy to catch, easy to feed on."

"As you wish." Jacob feels several pairs of hands on his body, half lifting him, half dragging him painfully up the stairs of the basement that served as his prison. They throw him unceremoniously into the bed of a pickup truck and, despite the snow, drive to the edge of the reservation. They dump the weak, shaking body at the edge of the border, knowing that someone will find him before he's too weak to survive. They drive off, leaving Jacob curled up in the snow, shaking, weak, and whimpering.

"Oi!" Quil bounds through the snow almost an hour later. "Embry, I think you'd better see this…" he stops at Jacob's body, falling to his knees beside his friend.

"Jesus," Embry whispers, kneeling in the snow beside Quil. "Jacob?"

"Yeah," Quil nods as Jacob lets out a low, pained moan.

"What happened to him?" Embry gulps, looking at Quil.

"I don't know, let's get him back." Quil wraps his arms around Jacob's torso, supporting his head as best he can. Embry helps, aiding the lift until Jacob rests bridal style in Quil's arms. Then he pulls off his own jacket, placing it over Jacob's shivering body. They slowly make their way back to Jacob's house and Embry knocks on the door.

"What is it?" Billy Black opens the door, his eyes widening in horror as he sees his son, half alive, in Quil's arms. "What happened?"

"We don't know," Quil shakes his head, carrying Jacob inside and laying him down on his bed. "We found him just at the tip of the reservation…he hasn't said a word, just the occasional groan…I think he's in a lot of pain." Billy wheels over to the bed to examine his injured son. Quil gestures for Embry to come over, and places an arm around him, kissing the top of his head while they watch Billy examine their friend.

"Is he going to be ok?" Embry whispers, moving closer to Quil.

"I hope so," Quil breathes, running his fingers through Embry's long hair.

"Boys," Billy turns to them. "I think that it would be best if you left."

"Why?" Quil asks, raising an eyebrow in confusion. Jacob is his best friend, and he doesn't intend on leaving him like this.

"This," Billy gestures for the boys to come over, showing them the bite mark on Jacob's neck.

"Is that…" Embry gulps.

"Cullen," Quil snarls. "I'll kill them, all of them. They'll pay for this."

"Hey," Embry wraps his arms around Quil's waist. "Shh, we don't know that it was them, baby," he whispers.

"It was," Quil hisses. "Who else could have done that to him? The nomads? They left ages ago and I don't think they're back!"

"Quil," Embry slowly guides Quil around to face him. "We don't know who it was; you don't want to take it out on the wrong people."

"Maybe I do!" Quil snaps.

"Hey," Embry caresses Quil's cheek with the back of his hand. "That's not what you want," he shakes his head. "I don't want to see you getting into trouble, ok? So don't do anything that will." As Embry places a soft kiss to Quil's cheek, he can feel the anger inside of Quil lessening.

"Fine," Quil sighs. "But if it turns out to be them, they're dead."

"I know," Embry nods. "Come on, let's leave Jacob to heal." Embry laces his fingers through Quil's and gently leads him out of the house, leaving Jacob with Billy.

"Jacob?" Billy gently places his hand on his son's shoulder. "I'm going to leave you for a minute, I'll be right back." Jacob is in too much pain to nod, so he just lies there, trying to remain stoic while Billy fetches the shaman. When they get back to the tent, Jacob hasn't moved. His fists are balled and he's trying to focus on getting them clenched as tightly as possible so that he's not thinking about the pain coursing his body. The shaman looks at him, nodding a few times here and there. He rubs some kind of herbal cream over Jacob's bite and gives Jacob something for the pain. It helps a little, but not much.

"He will be alright," the shaman tells Billy. "He's lost a lot of blood, but he's strong enough to pull through without a transfusion."

"Good," Billy nods. "What else can we do for him?"

"Just make sure that he drinks enough liquids and gets enough to eat and enough sleep, he's a strong boy, he'll be just fine in a couple of weeks."

"Is there any way for you to tell who it was that bit him?" Billy asks.

"Not just by looking, no," the shaman shakes his head. "But whoever it was didn't give him much say in the matter, nor much of a chance to fight it off." The shaman lifts Jacob's arm, showing Billy the cuts and chafing left by the strong restraints used to bind him to the wall.

"So there is some vampire out there with the capabilities to subdue a werewolf?" Billy asks. The shaman nods.

"Probably some power hungry vampire, possibly a clan," the Shaman nods, looking at Billy. "I'd say that we have a bit of a mess on our hands – especially if this vampire is looking for violent power; keep Jacob guarded, he's weak, he'd be an easy target if this villain gets hungry again."

"I will," Billy nods, pulling a blanket over his son. "Thank you." Billy places a fatherly kiss to his son's forehead before leaving him to his tortured, drug induced sleep.

During that fitful sleep, Jacob dreams, unwillingly and unpleasantly, of Jasper.


	3. Chapter 3

Jasper feels his return to normalcy and he feels a rush of fear as he looks at the cell. "No," he whispers to himself as he sees the remains lying in the corner. "NO!" he roars, backing himself as far back as possible into the corner. He wishes that he could cry, he wishes that the sadness he's feeling could leave his body some way – that he wouldn't have to hold inside what he's done. He wants to die, he knows it the second he identifies the pieces of the mangled body in the cell with him. "Alice…" he shivers as he whispers her name softly. "Alice, I'm so sorry…"

"Well look who's back," one of the beings who forced him into this approaches the cell.

"You," Jasper grabs the bars, snarling at the being. "You did this!"

"No, Hale," the being shakes his head. "I believe that you did this."

"You made me do it!" Jasper glares. Usually he's calm, collected, but now malice is pouring through him. "This wouldn't have happened if you – WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!"

"I've gotten it," the being shrugs. "You're free to go."

"What?" Jasper is confused as the door to his cell opens. Two of the masked beings wrench his arms behind his back, dragging him from the cell. "What are you doing?" he struggles against them, not sure of what they'll make him do next…and he really, really doesn't want to hurt anybody else.

"We're letting you go," the being shrugs as they drag Jasper up the stairs. "So I suggest you be kinder to us."

"You made me kill Alice," Jasper seethes. "I'll never be kind to you."

"We'll see," they shove Jasper out into the snow. "Now get out of here before we make you kill someone else."

"Fine," Jasper begins to run. He's halfway home before he stops. He can't go back there.

_I killed Alice_, he thinks, his heart racing. His head is spinning, and more than anything he wants to feel sick – he's disgusted by what he has done and he wants to feel it. _I can't go home, I can't face them,_ he shakes his head. _They'll find you, Jasper, you know that they will._ He closes his eyes, he wants the voices to leave his lead, he wants to be able to think freely, clearly, but his mind is crippled with contrasting thoughts.

"Why?" he falls to his knees, sinking deep into the snow. "Why kill her and spare me?" he shouts. He doesn't believe in god, he never has and he never will, but right now if feels good to have someone to blame for everything. He doesn't fear eternal damnation because he's already living it. "How can you be so cruel?" he screams his question. ""People praise you constantly and all that you do is cause pain and suffering!" His breathing is ragged and he still wants to cry, but his screams don't make him any more human and he is still unable to produce the tears he so gravely longs for. "All _I _do is cause pain and suffering," he whispers.

He doesn't know how long he stays on his knees in the snow, it does not impact him physically, it can't because he is already ice cold. He doesn't remember killing Alice, he doesn't recall tearing her body limb from limb, the last thing that he remembers is biting Jacob, _killing _Jacob? But he knows that he killed Alice, he knows that it was him because it's there in his mind, weighing prevalent on his conscience. _I should have been stronger_, he thinks to himself. _Carlisle – Edward, even Emmett would have been able to restrain themselves._ Now Jasper is just trying to make himself feel more guilt – he knows the power of werewolf's blood, he knows that no vampire can resist the side effects of the blood: not himself, not Carlisle, not Emmett, not Edwards – not anyone.

"What do I do now?" he whispers softly. "Where am I supposed to go? I can't go back." He squeezes his eyes shut. _You can't hide from them, Jasper_, he thinks. _They will find you, and when they do, you won't be able to lie to them – you won't be able to hide anything, Edward will know, Edward always knows…the only way to avoid that is to not think about what you've done, and that's impossible. _He shivers – not because he's feeling the cold, but because he is feeling fear; he's alone, he's confused, and worst of all, he's a murderer.

_Even if they understand, even if they know that I couldn't control myself, even if they tell me that it's alright, I'll still be able to feel their emotions, their disappointment, anger, hatred… _Jasper shakes his head. There is no going back, he has lost his place in the Cullen family, he is on his own now, and he can only think of one place that he can go where the Cullen's will not find him - the Quileute reservation. If he hides there, the Cullen's won't find him – they aren't allowed to go onto the Quileute land, then again, neither is Jasper. If the Quileute find him, they will spare him no mercy, he killed Jacob, didn't he? They will rip him to pieces and Jasper can not help but think how much he wants that – to fall subject to the same fate as Alice. _No, _he thinks. _No matter what happens, you will never feel as Alice did,_ and he's right about that, because even if the Quileute tear him to shreds, he will not be dying at the hands of someone whom he loves – someone who is supposed to love him.

Slowly, Jasper gets to his feet. He wonders, as he moves towards the reservation, how long he will be able to hide on the land before he is discovered and destroyed. He thinks that if he careful and stays hidden well that he might be able to last a few days, maybe a week. He expects to be found at some point, he knows that it is inevitable, but what he doesn't expect is to be found by Jacob.


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N So I know that it's been nearly a year since I updated this, but my roommate inspired me to bring it back from the dead, so here you go! I hope that you enjoy it...or at least try to!

* * *

**_

Jasper turns as he hears a growling sound. He gulps, backing up slightly as he finds himself face to face with a wolf. He's hungry, feeding on small animals – squirrels and the like, has not kept him in the best of spirits, and he knows that he's weak, but even the weakest of vampires know the consequences for feeding on a werewolf.

"What are you doing here?" Jasper's eyes widen as the wolf shifts and Jacob stands before him, looking tall and regal in comparison to the cowering vampire. There is still a mark on Jacob's neck where the venom took him, but aside from that, Jacob looks better than anyone could have expected a week into his healing process.

"I couldn't go back." Jasper shakes his head. "Not after what I did, I killed her, I killed Alice I – they would never forgive me." He looks down, feeling tears stinging at his eyes. It's not often that he is upset enough to cry, not after all he's done, all of the vampires he's killed, all of the people, but Alice meant something to him, and he ended her.

"I know." Jacob nods, sitting down in the snow, keeping a safe distance from the hungry vampire. "I mean I know what the Cullen's are like, they're…different than most of the cold ones, but…" Jacob bites his lip, looking down. "So are you."

"Yeah." Jasper nods. "I'm a vicious killer." As he speaks the words, his voice is barely above a whisper, and he doesn't know how or why, but stating the words aloud not only to himself but to someone else makes it seem so much more real. The tears that have been threatening him for days break loose, streaming down his cheeks. Jasper turns away, trying to hid his display of emotion from the other boy, but his attempt is unsuccessful.

"You don't have to cry." When Jacob speaks, his voice is calm, even, not at all the way that Jasper would expect it to be. After, the Blacks and the Cullens, they aren't meant to get along, they aren't meant to tolerate each other. "What you did, Jasper, it wasn't your fault. It was my blood that spurred the action so if you're going to blame anyone here, it-it should be me."

"That's not so." Jasper shakes his head, though his tear-filled eyes are still cast downwards. "You know that you didn't tell me to drink your blood, if anything, you should be loathing me for what I did to both you and Alice."

"Look, the blame falls on neither of us." Jacob looked at Jasper, trying to pull the vampire's gaze to him. "What happened, none of us could have stopped it. Whoever – whatever took us, that's what's to blame for all of this and not ourselves."

"You can say it," Jasper began. "You can say that over and over again, but you're not the one who killed Alice. I loved her, Jacob, love – do you even know what that feels like?"

"In a way." Jacob gulps, looking away from Jasper immediately. The imprint is different than love, and in a way, Jacob feels that it may be even worse, but Jasper is in pain, a great deal of it, and arguing feelings doesn't seem like the right move to make, not now, perhaps not ever, so he changes the subject. "You're hungry."

"I'm fine," Jasper counters.

"You're not." Jacob shakes his head. "You're starved."

"I said I'm fine!" Jasper hisses.

"You're doing everything in your power not to sink your teeth into me again," Jacob states. "You're only stopping yourself because you know what will happen if you do, but you're losing your self control, you're starving."

"I'm fine!" Jasper tries again, but Jacob just shakes his head a second time as he gets to his feet. "Stay here." In seconds, Jacob is gone and all that Jasper can see is a brown wolf bounding off through the snow.

For several moments, the vampire debates moving, leaving and hiding again so that Jacob cannot come back. He stands, but sits back in the snow almost instantly. Jasper feels weak from hunger and he knows that he won't get far without something to eat. He looks around, hoping for some small animal – a hare, perhaps, to make a snack of, but there is nothing, just the white of the snow and the brown and green of the fir trees surrounding him, keeping him shielded from passers-by who would be more interested in seeing him ripped to shreds and burned than anything else.

"Hey." Jasper jumps as he hears a voice behind him and Jacob moves towards him, dragging a deer. He drops the still breathing animal at Jasper's feet, looking at the vampire. "Drink," he states.

"I…" Jasper wants to reject the present, but he can't. The smell of the blood is too alluring and he is far too hungry to ignore the calls. He wastes no time sinking his fangs into the deer, closing his eyes as he drinks his fill. When he wipes his mouth and opens his eyes again, he feels much better, but is surprised to find Jacob still standing over him. "How could you watch that?" he asks, his voice displaying the confusion he feels. "It's repulsive."

"I looked away," Jacob admits. He feels the bite on his own neck hurting, but he knows that the pain is psychological; he is thinking about the wound, thus he feels it.

"Why did you bring me that?" Jasper asks.

"So you wouldn't go for me," Jacob replies, not a shred of teasing in his tone. "You were getting hungry and if it wasn't me, it would have been the next being to walk past you, human or otherwise. I couldn't let that happen."

"Oh." Jasper nods. He wants to argue against Jacob, but he cannot deny that the boy has a point. At the same time, however, he cannot bring himself to thank Jacob either.

"Look, if you need a place to stay…" Jacob pauses, looking at the snow covered ground. "I know a place where you will be safe."

"I'm fine here." Jasper shakes his head.

"It's warmer there," Jacob counters. "You won't be sitting in the snow."

"I can't feel it," Jasper reminds him. "I can't feel anything." The last phrase he whispers more to himself than to Jacob, but the shifter hears it anyways, though he artfully ignores it.

"I would feel better if you weren't out here," Jacob tries. "It's not safe for anyone. If Sam found you out here…" Jacob trails off, not wanting to think about the possibilities.

"It doesn't matter." Jasper shakes his head. "It doesn't matter."

"Well I'll give you a night to sleep on it, then-"

"I don't sleep," Jasper interjects, his tone venomous.

"I'll give you a night to think on it," Jacob amends. "And if you've changed your mind, I'll be back here roughly the same time tomorrow."

"Don't bother." Jasper shakes his head.

"Just think on it." Jacob doesn't wait for a response, he simply turns, adopting his wolf form and disappearing almost effortlessly through the white snow. As Jasper sits there, his back against a tree, eyes closed, he wonders why Jacob is doing this – why the young native American is being so kind to him – none of it makes sense. Then again, not much of anything is making sense to Jasper right now, so he tries to let it go, sitting against his tree, trying to push Jacob from his mind.


	5. Chapter 5

"They've been gone for too long." Carlisle buries his head in his hands, pressing his fingers to his forehead as he tries to think. "This is not like them – they should be back by now. Something's gone wrong, I just know it."

"I'm sure that's not so." Esme shakes her head, placing her hand on her husband's shoulder. "Alice and Jasper can handle themselves, they're strong, Carlisle, you know that."

"I realize that they're strong, but it's been over a week since we've heard from them and that's just too long. I don't feel right about this, Esme, and you know how little I am wrong."

"I…" Esme trails off. She knows that this is true; when Carlisle feels that something is wrong, it very often is, so why should this time be any different. "We can send Edward to look for them," she states. "If anyone can find them, it's him."

"Do you think that wise?" he asks. "If something's happened to Jasper and Alice, what makes you think that the same fate won't meet Edward?" Carlisle looks at his wife, his face rigid with concern. "I think that, perhaps, it is best we go together, as a family, take Emmett, Rosalie and Edward with us."

"He won't leave her." Rosalie shakes her head, smirking as the couple turns, surprised by her presence. "Edward, I mean, he won't leave Bella to go chasing after Jasper and Alice and you know it. He's gone for her."

"Well she is not coming with us." Carlisle speaks with a firm determination, his tone depicting his iron fisted rule over the family. "We have put her in danger many times already, this is not another where she needs to be put in harm's way just to be nearer Edward."

"We can't very well leave Edward behind," Esme interjects. "He's the one with the useful power in this situation, he may be able to lead us to Jasper and Alice in his own…unique way. Besides, he's fast."

"This is a decision that we cannot make as a partial group," Carlisle states. "We have to make this decision as a family."

"Or what's left of one," Rosalie scoffs.

"Go and fetch Emmett and Edward," Esme requests, her arm snaking around her husband's shoulders. "We will work this out as a group, just as Carlisle said."

"Fine." Roaslie turns on her heel, exiting the room, only to return minutes later with the male vampires in tow.

"What's going on?" Emmett asks, taking a seat, pulling Roaslie into his lap.

"We are worried that Alice and Jasper have been gone for too long, they are never out of contact this long." Carlisle looks out over his family. "We think that it may be time to go looking for them."

"I'm not leaving Bella." Edward shakes his head instantly. "I can't leave her by herself without defense, without protection."

"You see? I told you." Rosalie rolls her eyes. "He won't go anywhere without his precious human."

"Babe, chill." Emmett kisses Roaslie's cheek, calming her. "We'll get it figured out."

"Edward," Esme looks at Edward, sighing. "I think that Bella will be alright on her own for a day or two. She cannot come with, she would be a liability." Esme stares Edward down, trying to keep him from reacting and starting a fight. "Carlisle believes that something is wrong, how often is he wrong?" She tilts her head to the side, posing her question with a serious nature.

"He was right about moving back here," Rosalie quips. "If we hadn't done that, Edward never would have met this stupid human girl and nothing would have changed. Our life was fine."

"Roaslie," Carlisle interrupts her. "Right now this is not about Edward and Bella, alright? This is about Alice and Jasper. They have been a part of this family for awhile now and you know as well as I that if something is wrong it is our job to discover what it is."

"I have an idea." Esme sighs, running her fingers through her hair. "I will stay here with Bella, that way if Jasper and Alice come home, someone will be here to receive them."

"I'm alright with that." Carlisle nods and all eyes turn to Edward. Edward doesn't move, he stands there, thinking for a few minutes. He knows that Esme is qualified to protect Bella, especially because no one is after her, at least not that he knows of, but a part of him still does not want to leave her.

"Fine." Edward gives in, nodding as he does so. "But I want you to keep a solid eye on her, I don't want anything happening to her."

"Nothing will happen to her." Esme shakes her head. "I promise."

"Then let's go," Edward snarls. "I want this over with as soon as possible."

"Fine." Rosalie stands up, taking Emmett's hand and pulling him up. His arm loops around her waist, and Roaslie's head rests on Emmett's shoulder.

"Edward, I want you to concentrate, see if you can hear them, any sort of help that we can get would be good."

"Alright." Edward nods, closing his eyes, trying to tune into the thoughts of Jasper and Alice. He tries for several minutes, but he gets nothing. "I'm sorry." Edward shakes his head. "Wherever they are…they're out of my range."

"Great." Rosalie rolls her eyes. "Well let's get going."

"I agree." Carlisle nods and places a kiss to his wife's cheek before leading the family away from the house. "Alright, Rosalie, you and Emmett go north, Edward, you come with me." Edward nods, following Carlisle as Emmett and Rosalie go in their own direction. "No Edward," Carlisle whispers. "I really need you to focus. I _know_ that something is not as it should be and I am worried."

"I can tell." Edward nods. "I'll do what I can, just keep moving. If we get within range of their thoughts, I'll know."

"Alright." Carlisle continues to walk, hoping that with every step he takes, they are becoming closer to finding Jasper and Alice.

"Stop!" After almost two miles of walking, Edward stops short. "I've got it, I've got Jasper."

"What?" Carlisle turns to face Edward. "What is he thinking?"

"No." Edward's face goes even more pale than it was before, if possible. "This can't be right."

"What is it, Edward?" Carlisle asks.

"Alice is dead, but it gets worse." Edward gulps.

"What is it?" Carlisle presses.

"Jasper killed her."


	6. Chapter 6

Just as he had said, Jacob arrives just where he had left Jasper the day before. Jasper is still there, sitting by himself, looking sick and miserable. He looks up, however, when Jacob approaches, eyeing the boy's tall, strong form in comparison to his own small, weak one.

"Come." Jacob holds his hand out as he approaches Jasper. "You cannot stay here."

"I can," Jasper whispers. "I'm fine here, alright?" Jasper backs away from the offered hand. He wants nothing to do with Jacob, he cannot accept his help, not after all that he's done. It is forbidden, at least by the family that Jasper has come to call his own, to bite another human, and yet Jasper did so.

"You're not." Jacob shakes his head. "We still don't k now what or who it was that took us, but whatever they were, Jasper, they were able to overpower us. That means that this creature is strong, stronger than we are. You are not safe out here. You're an easy target, a sitting duck."

"Let them come." Jasper shrugs. "Let them take me, let them kill me, it's for the best."

"Don't say that." Jacob gulps. The imprint that he has made on Jasper, the one that he has kept a secret from everyone so far, makes him unable to tolerate this sort of action from Jasper. He can't just let the person he cares most about – the creature he cares most about, die, but he doesn't know how to make Jasper understand that, because he can't explain to the vampire what happened in the fraction of a second before Jasper's fangs sunk into his skin.

"Leave me alone." Jasper backs further away, stopping as he makes contact with a tree. The last thing that Jasper wants is to accept any sort of charity from this boy, this shifter. They are not meant to be friends, they are meant to hate each other, and Jasper, after what he has done, cannot bear to take the charity of one of the Quileute.

"I cannot do that." Jacob shakes his head. "Should you meet your end on this land, on my people's reservation, we will be blamed for it, even if it is not your fault. The divide between your family and mine, it is big enough already, don't you think?" Jacob frowns as he looks at Jasper. "If you desire death, find it elsewhere. Either let me take you to safety, or get off this land." The final statement comes directed at Jasper with a snarl, Jacob standing tall in an attempt to push Jasper to a safe decision.

"Fine." Jasper gets to his feet, pushing past Jacob. "I'll leave."

"No." Jacob reaches out before he can stop himself, his hand grabbing Jasper's arm, pulling him backwards. "Please, Jasper, don't do this." He shakes his head. "I can't explain why, but I can't let this happen. Let me take you somewhere safe, let me protect you. Please."

"What?" Jasper's eyes turn a soft honey-color as he makes eye contact with Jacob. The young shifter is being genuine, and Jasper can tell. He wants to protect Jasper, he wants to make sure that the vampire is safe, but he doesn't understand why Jacob could ever want that. "Protect me?" Jasper's voice is barely above a whisper as he speaks, looking downwards again, the toe of his shoe kicking at the soft snow on the ground.

"Yes." Jacob nods. "I can't afford to let what happened start a war between your family and mine. I can't afford to let you die when I could have stopped you." Jacob's grip is still tight on Jasper's hand, and he has no wish to remove his hand, not until he is sure that Jasper won't leave.

"I bit you," Jasper declares, his eyes falling on the mark still visible on Jacob's neck. "I drank your blood. We have never been kind to each other, our families have hated each other for years. Why are you pushing this when I am willing to leave the reservation and face my own death?"

"Do you remember," Jacob begins. "Just before you bit me, what you said to me?"

"N-no." Jasper shakes his head, trying as hard as he can to recall the words he had spoken to Jacob. "I don't." He looks down, ashamed that he cannot remember his own words.

"You said that you were sorry." Jacob puts his hand on Jasper's chin, pulling the vampire's gaze up to meet his. "You apologized for what you were about to do, even though you were being forced to do it. You're asking why I'm not furious with you, it's because it was not your fault. You had no control over what you were being told to do, you could have made the bite without saying a word and it still wouldn't have been your fault, but you didn't, you should remorse, compassion." Jacob sighs, his hold on Jasper's arm loosening. "Your apology left an impression."

"Oh." Jasper gulps. He still doesn't remember saying that he was sorry, but Jacob seems serious, which means it must have happened, it must be true.

"Your family will not be please with what you have done, you're alone right now, let me make that go away, at least for a short time. Let me take you somewhere safe where you can eat regularly and think about what's happened, think about where you're going to go from here."

"I…" Jasper thinks for a moment, trying to keep his thoughts in check as he mulls over Jacob's words. The boy is right. He is alone right now, he can't go home, he can't go anywhere because he has nowhere to go. Jacob, at least for a short time, is offering him something that he needs. Safety. "Alright."

"Come on." Jacob begins to walk, checking behind to make sure that Jasper is following. The vampire moves, hesitantly taking his first steps to catch up with Jacob. They fall into step together, trudging through the snow side by side, a vampire and a shifter, and as Jasper looks behind him for only a moment, he notices that despite all of the differences in their lives, their families, their footprints are the same.


End file.
